However, when once I began the Puja, I forgot all about the shortage and went on with one tulsi dhalam for each name, reassured and beckond by the generous heap in the tray before me. Not till the puja was over and I relaxed after partaking of prasadam was my attention attracted to the substantial quantity of tulsi still left in the tray. I checked with those present to make sure that I had continuously used only the tulsi for each 'name' of the archana. On counting the quantity left over I found nearly three hundred dhalams.

How else could I explain it except as Baba's leela. "Ask and it shall be given."

Glory be to Shri Sirdi Sai - Grace be to all

BABA'S MIRACLE - 2

What can the snake do to Dwarakamayi's children? When Dwarakamayi protects, can it strike? We have no need to fear. Strike, let me see how you can strike and kill!"

- Promises of Baba as Dwarakamayi

In fulfilment of the above charter granted for all time to His devotees, Baba twice saved us from imminent danger of fatal poisonous bites.

The first time was in the winter of '42 in an interior village of Visakhapatnam Dt. where we had sought refuge from the Japanese bombing of the city and the threatened overnight invasion by sea in March of that year. It came about like this.

One evening my wife drew my attention to a small snake about 10" long slowly creeping along the foot of the wall of the front vereanda where I was sitting. In the impulse of the moment, I did the stupidest thing. Taking its small size for granted, I hit it with one of my chappals and sutomatically stood up. Instantaneously, it jumped up reaching for my face as if it had instinctively anticipated my erect posture. It was so sudden and so totally unexpected that I was startled out of my wits, so to say. Only Baba I am sure must have made me slant my head backwards in the nick of the movement, so that missing its mark narrowly it fell down. In frantic fear and despair, I picked up the other chappal near me and hit it in a frezy and killed it.